Los Angeles County Municipal Code Part 7 Commercial Cannabis Activities

A.

The purpose of Part 7 of Chapter 8.04 is to establish a public health permit and fee system for commercial cannabis activities that are subject to State and local laws and regulations relating to public health, and ensure that County expenses resulting from the County's inspection and enforcement of public health requirements of commercial cannabis activities are offset by the fees collected.

B.

The authority for this Part 7 is contained in Division 10 of the California Business and Professions Code, which expressly permits local regulation of commercial cannabis activities.

C.

Definitions contained within Section 8.04.1305 pertain to Chapter 11.37 of Title 11 of this Code.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A.

"Applicant" means the individual or business entity that is applying for a public health permit to operate a cannabis facility and whose name the permit will be issued. The applicant must be the owner of the cannabis facility and will be considered the permittee upon issuance of a permit.

B.

"Cannabis facility" means a permanent structure in a fixed location where a cannabis retailer, distributor, manufacturer, cultivator, or microbusiness operates or conducts business.

C.

"Cannabis product" means cannabis that has undergone a process whereby the plant material has been transformed into a concentrate, including, but not limited to, concentrated cannabis, or an edible or topical product containing cannabis or concentrated cannabis and other ingredients.

D.

"Cannabis product recall" means an action or order made by the State and/or the county health officer to cease the sale, distribution, or manufacturing of cannabis or cannabis product when it has been determined by the County Health Officer that there is a reasonable likelihood that the cannabis or cannabis product is adulterated or misbranded, and that the use of, or exposure to, the cannabis or cannabis product may cause adverse health consequences to humans and/or animals.

E.

"Commercial cannabis activity" means the cultivation, possession, manufacture, distribution, handling, processing, storing, packaging, labeling, transportation, delivery, or sale of cannabis and cannabis products.

F.

"County Health Officer" means the Director of Public Health of the County of Los Angeles, or the duly appointed County Health Officer or his or her duly authorized representative.

G.

"Department" means the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Division.

H.

"Distributor" means a person or entity licensed and permitted to engage in the business of the distribution of cannabis and cannabis products between licensed cannabis facilities.

I.

"EHS" means an Environmental Health Specialist.

J.

"Employee" means each and every person engaged in the operation or conduct of any commercial cannabis activity business, whether as owner, member of the owner's family, partner, associate, agent, manager or operator, and each and every other person employed or working in such business for a wage, salary, commission, barter, or any other form of compensation, or for no compensation.

K.

"Manufacturer" means a person or entity licensed and permitted to conduct the production, preparation, propagation, or compounding of cannabis or cannabis products either directly or indirectly, or by extraction methods, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis at a fixed location that packages or repackages cannabis or cannabis products or labels or re-labels its container.

L.

"Microbusiness" means a person or entity, licensed by the State of California, and licensed, permitted or authorized by applicable local laws to cultivate cannabis on an area less than 10,000 square feet and to act as a licensed and/or permitted

cannabis distributor, Level 1 manufacturer, as defined by Business and Professions Code Section 26130(a)(1), and/or retailer.

M.

"Notice of closure" means a public notice that may be posted by the County Health Officer at a cannabis facility upon suspension or revocation of the facility's public health permit and results in the immediate closure of the cannabis facility and the discontinuance of all operations of the cannabis facility, by order of the County Health Officer, because of violations of applicable State, and local statutes, orders, ordinances, quarantines, rules, regulations, or directives relating to the public health.

N.

"Operator" means anyone who, as an employee, manager, owner, or otherwise, is engaged in the cultivation, distribution, dispensing, manufacturing, sale or handling of cannabis or cannabis products at a permitted cannabis facility.

O.

"Owner" means any of the following:

All persons identified as an "owner" on any permit, license, or other authorization issued by a State agency or local government which authorizes the persons to establish and operate the cannabis facility.

Any person identified or required to be identified as an "owner" on an application filed with any State agency and any local government, wherein the application requests the privilege to operate the cannabis facility.

If no person under subsection 1 or 2, above, exists:

a.

A person with an aggregate ownership interest of 20 percent or more in the corporate entity, partnership, or other business entity applying for a permit or a permittee, unless the interest is solely a security, lien, or encumbrance.

b.

The Chief Executive Officer of a nonprofit or other entity.

c.

A member of the Board of Directors of a nonprofit.

d.

An individual who will be participating in the direction, control, or management of the person applying for a permit, including, but not limited to, a member of the board of directors of a nonprofit.

P.

"Public health permit" means a written authorization to operate a cannabis facility, including but not limited to a cannabis cultivator, cannabis manufacturer, cannabis distributor, cannabis microbusiness, or cannabis retail facility, issued by the County Health Officer, without which permit said operation would be unlawful.

Q.

"State agency or State" means the State licensing entities responsible for creating regulation for commercial cannabis activity in California, including but not limited to, the:

California Bureau of Cannabis Control.

California Department of Public Health.

California Department of Food and Agriculture.

R.

"Testing laboratory" means a laboratory, facility, or entity in the State that offers or performs tests of cannabis or cannabis products and that is ISO/IEC 17025 accredited, or pending ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, and licensed by the California Bureau of Cannabis Control.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A.

Prior to the establishment or operation of any cannabis facility, or when an established and operating cannabis facility possesses a provisional license from a local licensing agency while applying for a permanent license, the owner shall obtain a public health permit and other applicable permits and licenses from all State and local licensing agencies.

B.

Every owner desiring a public health permit to conduct commercial cannabis activities from a cannabis facility shall file an application with the Department upon a form provided by the Department, and at such time pay the required fee and penalty, if any.

C.

Upon receipt of an application for a public health permit for a cannabis facility with all pertinent data and the submission of the full public health permit fee, the Department shall review the application.

D.

All permits for a cannabis facility shall be valid for 12 months from the date of issuance and may be renewed annually. The public health permit is valid only for the person or entity, location, and type of sales or activity approved.

E.

Public health permits shall not be transferable upon change of ownership of the cannabis facility.

F.

Each commercial cannabis activity within a cannabis facility including, but not limited to, retail, distribution, manufacturing and cultivation shall be deemed a separate enterprise for purposes of this Part and shall require a separate public health permit.

G.

All public health permits and licenses shall be posted in a conspicuous place at the cannabis facility.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A.

An application for renewal of any cannabis facility public health permit shall be submitted by the owner to the Department at least 60 calendar days prior to the expiration date of the current permit, but no more than 120 calendar days prior to the expiration of the current permit.

A cannabis facility owner shall complete and submit all required documents for a public health permit renewal to the Department.

A permitted cannabis facility owner that does not obtain a renewed permit by end of the business day of the expiration date shall discontinue operation of the facility until a new public health permit is issued.

Any permit that has not been renewed by the annual renewal date will not be valid and shall be deemed inactive.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

The Department may reject an application or renewal application upon making any of the following findings:

A.

The applicant made one or more false or misleading statements or omissions on the public health permit application or during the application process.

B.

The applicant's business entity, if applicable, is not properly organized in compliance with applicable State and local laws and regulations.

C.

The applicant fails to meet the requirements of this Part or of Chapter 11.37 of the County Code.

D.

The applicant, or any of its officers, directors, owners, managers, or employees is under twenty-one (21) years of age.

E.

The applicant, or any of its officers, directors, owners, or managers, is a licensed physician making patient recommendations for medicinal cannabis.

F.

The applicant did not pay the County the required application and processing fees.

G.

The County Health Officer has determined good cause exists to reject the application.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A.

A person proposing to construct, remodel, or change the public health permit classification of any cannabis facility shall submit a plan check fee which is in addition to any other public health permit fees that may be required for the operation of the cannabis facility.

B.

Each person proposing to construct or remodel a microbusiness, or distribution, manufacturing, or retail cannabis facility shall submit to the Department for review three complete, easily readable plans, drawn to scale and with specifications, and shall receive plan approval from the Department before starting any new construction or remodeling of any cannabis facility.

C.

Plan corrections and additional specifications may be required, if the Department determines that such changes are necessary to assure compliance with the requirements of this subdivision B, including, but not limited to, change in the cannabis facility's method of operation.

D.

The plans shall be approved or rejected by the Department within 20 working days after receipt of plans and fees. The applicant shall be notified of the decision.

E.

Cannabis cultivation facilities, including microbusinesses proposing to cultivate cannabis, shall submit three complete, easily readable sets of plans drawn to scale and with specifications to the Department for review and approval for cross- connections compliance as required by the California Code of Regulations Title 17, applicable County Code provisions, and any other applicable requirements promulgated by the Department of Agriculture. A cannabis cultivation facility shall pay the applicable fee for the backflow prevention assembly, as required by Chapter 11.37.030 of this Code.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A person engaging in commercial cannabis activity without a public health permit as required by this Part shall be subject to civil penalties for each violation. Each day of operation shall constitute a separate violation of this Part. A violation of this Section shall incur such civil penalties as provided in Sections 8.04.934, 8.04.936, 8.04.938, and 8.04.942. The County may assess costs and fees as permitted by Section 8.04.705. If required by State law or regulation, or court order to destroy the cannabis associated with the violation, a violator shall be responsible for the cost of the destruction of cannabis or cannabis products associated with the violation.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

A.

Conditions requiring additional re-inspections due to a cannabis facility's noncompliance with applicable State and local laws and regulations, will incur additional re-inspection fees in effect at the time of reinspection. A re-inspection fee shall be due and payable whenever:

The County Health Officer has given written notice of a Public Health Code violation or violations to the owner, operator, or person in charge of a cannabis facility, and the notice contains a re-inspection date by which the violation or violations must be corrected.

The violation or violations have not been corrected by the re-inspection date on the notice of violation or official inspection document.

An additional re-inspection by the Department is necessary to determine whether the violation or violations have been corrected.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

All official inspection reports issued to a cannabis facility contain a notice similar to that contained in Section 8.04.650. Any additional re-inspection fees to be charged to a cannabis facility shall be similarly noticed as provided in Section 8.04.650.B.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)

The reinspection fee, plus any interest at the rate set forth in Section 8.04.840 and any penalty thereon shall be collected by the County Health Officer. The County Health Officer may add any unpaid balance to the amount due for any subsequent public health permit renewal or permit application by the owner of such cannabis facility or refer any delinquent fees to the Treasurer and Tax Collector for collection. The total amount due shall be the cannabis facility permit fee for such business.

(Ord. 2017-0060 § 1, 2017.)